The Sick Puppies didn't seem to be on the verge of overnight success
when they started recording "All the Same," the alt-rock ballad that
became a YouTube phenomenon after its use in a widely circulated video
for Juan Mann's "Free Hugs" campaign in 2006.

In fact, the band's history actually dates back to 1997, when
frontman Shimon Moore and bassist Emma Anzai first started playing
together as high school students in Sydney, Australia. After relocating
to Los Angeles, they got to work recording what would become their
breakthrough album, Dressed Up as Life, under circumstances that
can best be described as inconvenient.

"We were signed to an independent label," explains Anzai. "Basically
we were doing it on the producers' downtime. So whenever they had time
off, usually late at night or on the weekend, we'd go in and quickly
put something together and record it. We were just lucky to even be
doing that. So I think the focus was more on getting it done rather
than concentrating on the other bits."

In fact, the sessions had to be spread out so far apart that the
album ended up taking a year to record. And it was actually a
connection with their native Australia that led to success here in the
states.

Back in Sydney, Moore had filmed some video footage of Mann, who'd
already gained local notoriety for walking around a mall carrying a
sign that offered "Free Hugs." While in Los Angeles, Moore got word
that Mann was going through serious depression over the death of his
grandmother. So the singer decided to create a video greeting card with
the Sick Puppies song "All the Same" as the soundtrack for the
footage.

Moore then posted the video on YouTube and within days it had racked
up more than a quarter million hits. That led to radio play in Los
Angeles and then a deal with Virgin Records.

Dressed Up as Life got the Sick Puppies a good start, but its
follow-up, Tri-Polar, appears to be doing even better. The album
reached No. 31 on Billboard's Top 200, while its beefy rock
single "You're Going Down" is getting radio airplay and being used as a
theme song for the WWE.

Major-label life has also meant that the band no longer has to rely
on the kindness of strangers.

"We had a schedule, so we went, 'OK, great!'" says Anazi. "We had a
block of time where we could really focus on it."

Anzai says she and her bandmates were quick to take advantage of the
improved situation. And while she remains proud of Dressed Up as
Life, she's confident that Tri-Polar is a more fully
realized work.

Likewise, when it comes to touring, she expects the Tri-Polar
material will take the group's live show to a new level.

"The last tour we had the Dressed Up as Life album give or
take a couple of songs, and we couldn't really interchange too many
others," she says. "But this time around we've got a lot to choose
from, and I think we can pick and choose the best ones from both
albums. Hopefully it will be a much better set."